Enrolled SB 272: Relating to charges for rented motor vehicles, including cost recovery fees, and making a violation of the rented motor vehicle charge provisions an unfair trade practice.
00Enrolled SB 272 01 Relating to charges for rented motor vehicles, including cost recovery fees, and making a 02 violation of the rented motor vehicle charge provisions an unfair trade practice. 03 _______________ 04 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 05 to read: 06 LEGISLATIVE FINDING AND INTENT. The legislature finds that there are rental 07 car agreements that include fees in addition to the rental rate and taxes. It is the intent of the 08 legislature that rental car agreements separately identify and charge for these additional fees 09 and the taxes in the rental car agreements. 10 * Sec. 2. AS 45.45 is amended by adding new sections to read: 11 Article 7A. Rental Car Fees. 12 Sec. 45.45.450. Identification of cost recovery fees. If a rental car business 13 charges a cost recovery fee, the rental car business shall separately identify and charge
01 for each cost recovery fee in writing in the rental car agreement. In this section, "cost 02 recovery fee" means a vehicle licensing cost recovery fee, an airport-related cost, a 03 government tax, or a government surcharge. 04 Sec. 45.45.460. Vehicle licensing cost recovery fee. (a) A rental car business 05 may not charge a renter a vehicle licensing cost recovery fee unless the vehicle 06 licensing cost recovery fee represents a good faith estimate by the rental car business 07 of the average daily cost to the rental car business of recovering its actual total annual 08 licensing costs in the state during a calendar year. 09 (b) If the total amount of the vehicle licensing cost recovery fees collected by 10 a rental car business during a calendar year exceeds the actual amount of the rental car 11 business's licensing costs during that calendar year, the rental car business shall 12 (1) retain the excess amount; and 13 (2) adjust the good faith estimate required by (a) of this section for the 14 next calendar year so that the good faith estimate reflects the excess amount. 15 (c) In addition to the adjustment required by (b) of this section, a rental car 16 business may adjust its vehicle licensing cost recovery fee during the calendar year 17 when the excess vehicle licensing cost recovery fees are collected if the vehicle 18 licensing cost recovery fee otherwise complies with this section. 19 Sec. 45.45.470. Definitions. In AS 45.45.450 - 45.45.470, 20 (1) "car" means a motor vehicle; 21 (2) "licensing cost" means the cost of titling, registering, obtaining 22 license plates for, or inspection of the rental cars of a rental car business in the state; 23 (3) "motor vehicle" has the meaning given in AS 28.90.990; 24 (4) "rental car business" means a person who engages in the business 25 of renting cars in the state; 26 (5) "vehicle licensing cost recovery fee" means a fee to recover 27 licensing costs. 28 * Sec. 3. AS 45.50.471(b) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 29 (57) violating AS 45.45.450 - 45.45.470 (rental car fees).